Through the 6th Annual Community Facilities Challenge, Community Vision has partnered with Fresno State University (FSU), and The Armenian Museum of Fresno (AMF) on a project to repurpose five homes from Fresno’s Historic Old Armenian Town. AMF hopes to repurpose these homes to be developed into the Cultural Five-Home Town. This revitalization celebrates the Armenian community’s history and contributions to the Central Valley.
Since January, student teams from FSU’s Lyles College of Engineering, Craig School of Business, and the Department of Art and Design, have been working on the project as part of the Fresno Community Facilities Challenge. Now in its sixth year, the Challenge provides students with the opportunity to tackle real-world nonprofit facility challenges in their own community. Each team designs a feasibility analysis, which includes financial analysis, initial design concept, construction budget and schedule, and other relevant components necessary to move the project forward. On April 26, 2017 each student team will present its work at FSU.
“The Fresno Community Facilities Challenge goes beyond helping nonprofits with their facility issues,” explained Alice Rocha, Community Vision’s Fresno business development loan officer. “The goal is to connect these students to real life projects locally and foster a passion for community development.”
At the turn of the 21st century, the City of Fresno had plans to tear down the five historic homes to make room for a State Court of Appeals building and other commercial development. The homes were moved to their current location, a parcel of land near Highway 41. The Cultural Five-Home Town will feature exhibition and gallery space showcasing immigrant life in Fresno and promoting Fresno’s past and current vibrant, cultural fabrics.
“The impact of this collaboration is significant,” said Varoujan Der Simonian of AMF. “This project has the potential to revitalize a distressed neighborhood in Downtown Fresno while preserving historical sites and showcasing the cultural heritage and contribution of the Armenian-American Community in the Central Valley.”
If you’re interested in attending the 6th Annual Fresno Community Facilities Challenge awards ceremony on April 26th, please click here to learn more and RSVP.
